*3.5 stars rounded down*

The first half of this book is so extremely different from the second half that it is actually kind of jarring lol. To be completely honest, I almost DNFed after a handful of chapters because it was just too cheesy for me. I did enjoy the MCs’ chemistry and the spice🔥, but I was just struggling with the overall storyline.

Then, by part 2, there were a lot of timeline hops and major changes in the characters’ lives. By part 3, the story was something else entirely. It was an interesting twist and definitely had more depth that pulled me back in. The romance also ended up being not quite as cheesy as I was anticipating it to be. And I enjoyed how things panned out.

So, the second half of this book definitely saved it, but it still felt a bit too disjointed, IMO. This is my first Mia Sheridan book, and I did enjoy her writing, so I’d definitely give her other books a shot - namely, Archer’s Voice because I know how popular it is!

I really enjoyed the setup of this book and the writing flowed seamlessly. Stinger is another example of great story telling from Mia Sheridan and I’ll read whatever she puts out.

“Never let go, baby,” she said.

“I never did. I never let go. Of that weekend. Of you.”


Stinger by Mia Sheridan | 18+ check tw!

4.5 out of 5 🌟 | 🌶🌶

⚠️Potential Spoilers ahead! Proceed with caution! ⚠️

*A very special thank you to Netgalley and Bloom Books for allowing me to read this book early in exchange for an honest review*

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Okay, I ate this book up. Mia Sheridan is quickly becoming an author that I will instantly buy and read anything she writes. This book, in particular, is tied with Archer’s Voice for my favorite Mia Sheridan book.

Man, I really loved this book. Normally, I tend to not lean toward second chance romance as a trope because I’m not a fan of books that go back and forth from the present day to past. But the way that this book is done made the past and the present feel more cohesive. It’s split into three parts: past, while they’re separated, and present day. It makes for such an interesting and quick paced read.

The romance, the chemistry, and the banter was just phenomenally done. I loved Carson as a character and grew to love Grace, too. It does have an insta love/insta attraction element to it, but not in a way that made it feel unrealistic to me. There was also a great evolution of characters that I loved being able to go through them with.

The spice was so good. There is a good amount of it and the way it is written literally made me swoon.

My one critique is that the ending felt a little long and drawn out. And the end of the book almost felt like it was a different book post romantic climax. Not that I minded much, but it was enough to throw me off a bit.

If you love second chance romance with wonderful banter and great character evolution, this one is definitely for you.

This book isn’t what I expected! I loved Grace’a character and her relationship with Carson. This book was a lot different than some of her other books that I have read, but I did enjoy it!

Tropes: Military, Second Chance, 2 Night Stand

Thank you to NetGalley and Bloom Books for providing me with an E-ARC in exchange for my honest opinion!

In this book we follow Grace Hamilton and Carson Stinger. Grace and Carson run into each other at a hotel in Las Vegas where there are two conferences happening -- one for adult entertainment promo, and one for law students. In the beginning, she is captivated by his looks until she sees his name badge: Carson Stinger, Straight Male Performer. Carson notices her change in expression and though he is used to this happening, he is stung by Grace's change in demeanor but makes light of it with a joke. Unexpectedly, they get stuck in an elevator together and are stranded for a couple of hours. They both connect by sharing things about themselves and Carson makes a proposition to Grace to spend the weekend together. This changes both of them forever when they start to develop real feelings for each other, but ultimately, they leave Vegas separately. The second part of the story takes place 5 years later when they both meet up again unexpectedly. They have both held onto the experiences from that weekend and you see the choices they made as a result of the short time they spent together.

This book was different than Mia's other books that I have read, but I loved every page of it! I was hooked right from the beginning, and I read this book 6 hours straight and finished it. I loved both of the main characters, especially Carson. He had me blushing and laughing every time he talked. What I loved about Grace is how she is such a strong FMC, and has her life planned out how she wants it, and doing what is best for herself. Grace and Carson had so much chemistry, I felt it through the pages. There was so much angst and steaminess in this book, I was shocked! If you haven't read this book, I definitely recommend it when it gets re-released with that gorgeous cover!

Unfortunately, this book was not the book for me. When I saw it, I was extremely excited to read it and felt this premise was right up my alley. However, my big problem with this were based on the fact that this book came out originally in 2013 and felt like it was not properly updated.

Although I wasn't a huge fan of this book, I can see how it appeals to a variety of individuals. It is a second chance romance, it's spicy, there's angst, and redemption. There is significant character growth and the romance between the two characters, Grace and Carson, is sweet. I loved how the author flipped some tropes, with Carson being a male entertainer at the beginning of the book. All of this will appeal to a variety of readers and if you enjoy these elements, then this is the book for you.

Where it fell apart for me was this was originally written and published in 2013. Society changes and evolves over time, as does the author's writing strengths and voice. I felt that as this book is being republished, it needed an overhaul to accommodate for those changes. Parts of the book left a bad taste in my mouth. The judgemental aspect toward sex workers in the beginning and the pushing of a sexual assault victim to keep her baby toward the end needed to be reworked to integrate the larger discussions that have emerged in the 10 years since this book was written. Additionally, I felt that the author has grown as a writer since the publication of this book. The dialogue, interactions between characters, parts of the plot, and descriptions felt like a draft rather than an final product.

Overall, this was not the book for me, it hits home for a large number of people, especially those that enjoy second chance and angsty romance novels. Those that love that type of romance will definitely enjoy this novel.

Thank you to Sourcebooks Bloom Books and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

This was my second read by Mia Sheridan and I loved it. I think I liked this one better than Archer’s Voice.

I loved Grace and Carson. They were perfect together. Their second chance was so sweet. I thought Grace was a solid MFC. She knew what she wanted and went for it. Carson was great. The growth he had was my favorite. Seeing his journey from beginning to end was a wild ride.

I laughed out loud a few times. I cried, too. I really enjoyed this one.

A good romance: entertaining and compelling. I liked the characters, rooted for them, and the plot kept me hooked.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

I was able to read this book on Netgalley! On a whole I really enjoyed the book. A chance encounter and weekend together for Carson and Grace and then years apart, they had another chance encounter many years later.

I felt it started off slow and then really picked up a few chapters in. I didn’t want to put it down. I did feel the last few chapters were very drawn out and it could have ended before it did. It was a great love story!

3.5 stars

Tag line: Mia Sheridan sure knows how to tug at the heart!

Full review to come on FreshFiction.com.

This book had such an absurd storyline that I truly did not think I would enjoy it. I put it down for a few days before I picked it back up because AN UPTIGHT LAW STUDENT AND A PORN STAR? I mean are you kitten me?!

I’m so glad I picked it back up because the ride that was Grace and Carson was a ROLLER COASTER.

It was obvious they were going to fall for each other, but I think Mia Sheridan did a great job of pulling the depth out of both of them and recognizing how one weekend can completely change the course of your life.

Seeing Carson completely change her life around was beautiful, but I was disappointed that Grace reverted back to a lot of her old ways after getting back to Vegas.

Overall, a 3.5 ⭐️

NetGalley Review — my rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
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Stinger by @miasheridanauthor is a whirlwind second chance romance from start to finish. Serious Grace meets Wild Carson at a convention in Las Vegas & they strike a deal. One weekend. No strings attached. What could go wrong?
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I loved this one. I couldn’t put it down! It’s more than just a romance. This book had some complex themes and storylines and I enjoyed them all.
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The only thing that threw me was the jump in timelines for a section of the book but I understood why.
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Big thanks to @read_bloom for this ARC! And keep an eye out for Stinger by Mia Sheridan, out June 6th!
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#netgalley #miasheridan #stinger

Loved the Vegas vibes in this! I also appreciated the sex positive energy and how right off the bat we get that spice! I really loved how our two characters both teach other to take off their masks and just live and love.

I originally read this book years ago, and it was even better than I remembered!

Enemies to lovers, with amazing tension, there was definitely no slow burn found in this book. One weekend definitely changed Carson’s and Grace’s whole trajectory of their lives. Their chemistry was undeniable from the very first page.

This book has a little bit of a new adult feel to it, but the time passing really plays a big part in making this a second chance romance. Carson and Grace have changed so much since they met that first weekend. They both followed their hearts on what they really wanted from their lives.

This series follows the astrological signs, so make sure you read the authors note at the beginning. The author did an excellent job of bringing this sign to life.

This was yet another book that Mia Sheridan hits out of the park!
Stinger by Mia Sheridan is heart warming and just so much fun to read!
It made me laugh, cry, and swoon.
Just like her other books I have read, there is so much feeling between the main characters, great supporting characters, that are developed as well, and there is a meaning behind the story you read.
Each time I read one I think she can't possibly outdo her previous works but she does it every time! Stinger is equally as good, if not better than all of her previous works!
It's so beautifully written with so much feeling which Mia is a master at.
I love her writing style. I love the way she develops the characters and makes me feel what they're feeling.
Completely addictive. Mia Sheridan has a magical way of creating her characters: she will grab you from page one and will not let you go until you finish it.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Thank You NetGalley and Bloom Books for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

3.5 🌟
The spice and the tension between Carson and Grace was off the chart like spicy. The way they meet and the tension they had however felt like insta love? I wanted more of that developmental phase but I didn't really get that from this book. The angst in this book due to the time gap got my heart in pain😭. I did not expect that a murder mystery would bring them back together since now Grace is a lawyer and Carson is a head of security at the casino. This book was definitely fast paced!

Mia Sheridan’s writing has such a unique way of pleasantly devastating me. This book was no exception. I could not put it down.

Where do I even begin with this book?! Both Grace and I fell hard & fast for Carson Stinger, Straight Male Performer. Honestly, at 30% I was concerned, thinking, how could I have so much book left? But OMG, Mia Sheridan took the long way and I loved the twists and turns.

This story had a little bit of everything…laughs, angst, longing, insta-love, family drama, broken hero, awesome besties, spiiiice! It kept me hooked the entire time I was reading, and truth be told? Sometimes that’s all I need. Grace & Carson were totally addicting & gave me all the feels. I loved it!

Law student meets porn star in a hotel, very smutty especially at the beginning. I wasn’t expecting to like it as much as I did.
His reasoning behind the buttercup nickname 🥹

Soooooo much of me wish they had more time!! It was literally love at first weekend. I don’t even know what I would have done given that opportunity. I appreciate that they got second chance because what they had you could truly say it was true love. One could hardly exist without the other. I get the time away drove them to become the truest version of themselves but ahhhhh could you imagine if there wasn’t that long period in between. How much stronger and more whole they could have been!

Thank you for the opportunity to read this before the rerelease is published. It did not let me down!